Incident Command System: Disaster Preparedness - Case Study Example

? Incident Command System: Disaster Preparedness (Add (Add (Add Incident Command System: Disaster Preparedness Introduction A disaster can be any event, either natural or manmade, which is potent enough to threaten human lives, destruct property and infrastructure and hinder social life. Disaster preparedness can be termed as the state of readiness to contain the effects of a forecasted disaster event to mitigate the impact of the disaster. The impact includes loss of life, injury and damage to infrastructure and property. It means necessary steps are taken to offer rescue, relief, rehabilitation and all other necessary services after the disaster. Preparedness also means having necessary capability and resources to continue providing essential services without being overwhelmed by the demand. Disaster mitigation can be defined as the actions taken to reduce or eliminate the impact of a disaster on people, property and environment (cited in Volunteer Florida, n.d). The Incident Command System (ICS) is a disaster management system which helps integration of facilities, equipment, personnel, procedures and communications among various agencies and jurisdictions in order to manage resources during a disaster. 1. Decisions to be taken by the Incident Commander According to the given case, it is clear that the disaster is rising in complexity and size. So, firstly, the Incident Commander (IC) should assess whether he could alone manage the whole affair. Otherwise, he will have to ‘delegate the authority, divide responsibilities, or hand over the command’ to another more qualified officer (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2010). Also, as the problem is rising, it is for the Incident Commander to decide whether a written Incident Action Plan is required as there will be multiple agencies involvement. According to the given case scenario, during Hurricane Anne, the Incident Commander (IC) informs the Emergency Operations Center that there is a shortage of medical supplies, drinking water, food and temporary shelter. Also, it is reported that due to heavy rains and possible flooding, it is impossible to use tents. As the number of people who are injured is rising every moment, it is for the Incident Commander to decide whether additional health services should be sought from National Guard, Defense and Coast Guard. The second important issue is that the heavy rains have raised the possibility of flooding. So, it is for the Incident Commander to decide whether support should be sought from agencies to initiate evacuation. Thirdly, also due to heavy rain, it is not possible to use tents. So, the Incident Commander has to get help from the local authorities to use permanent structures to rehabilitate the affected people. 2. Prioritizing the problems First attention will be given to the case of medical supplies as many people are already injured. So, necessary steps will be taken to ensure that adequate medical supply is in place. Secondly, as the case shows, there is a possibility of flooding and it is not possible to use tents. So, agencies will be called in to see that the ones who are likely to drown are evacuated. With the help of local authorities, the evacuated people will be offered shelter in permanent structures instead of temporary shelters. Once it is made sure that people are moved to safer grounds, steps will be taken to ensure food and drinking water. 3. Handling the problem as the Incident Commander In fact, it would have been possible to handle the situation in a better way if there had been better planning. At first, it was necessary to develop a Pre-Scripted Missions Assignment (PSMA). Using the same, appropriate tasks could be provided to various agencies. Also, Analysis Tools like the Sea, Lake and Overland Surges from Hurricanes (SLOSH) and the US Army Corps of Engineers modeling tools could be used to assess the speed, track and pressure of the hurricane. It would also help to assess the number of people within the affected area, as well as water, ice and commodity needs in the area (Dispatch Magazine On-Line, n.d). As already known, there is the Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) Task Force. Using this task force, it is possible to coordinate emergency services with tools, equipment, skills and techniques. This will help in search and rescue operations. As the case involves the threat of flooding and collapse of structures, there is the need to have US&R Task Force ready for action. Search and Rescue will act as an independent division under the Incident Commander. In this case, the help of the Department of Defense, National Guard and Coast Guard can be sought. Secondly, the Mobile Emergency Response Support (MERS) will be introduced to provide assistance. As the case indicates, there is a shortage of food and drinking water. MERS will be responsible for communications and logistics including fuel, water, life support, HVAC, transportation and power. The services provided by MERS as an independent division would ensure that water, food and shelter needs of people will be met. That means the burden on the Incident Commander will be reduced. Also, this will ensure proper attention to each issue at the same time. Here too, the help of Department of Defense, National Guard and Coast Guard can be made use of. As the Ministry of Environment points out (cited in British Columbia, n.d), the Incident Management Team should understand the facts that they are not alone but the entire resources of their government are with them. 4. The planning process could be more effective It is a fact that with more effective planning, the Incident Commander could better deal with the situation. First of all, it seems that the extent of damage was more severe than anticipated. That means the use of modeling tools to assess the extent of damage was not effective. After assessing the strength and course of the hurricane and after assessing the possibility of infrastructure damage using the various available tools, it is necessary to develop a Mission Assignment. This assignment will cover all the aspects of the issue. Had the planning process been effective in the given case, the shortage of medical supplies, water, food and shelter would not have arisen. With the present critical situation, the best way to ease things is to delegate certain responsibilities. First of all, it is necessary to offer adequate medical supplies, drinking water and food. Also, it is necessary to ensure shelters for the ones who are evacuated from the affected area. And thirdly, there is a threat of flooding. It is clear that the existing critical situation is the result of poor planning. First of all, the plan could not properly calculate the possible strength, course, damage and duration of the hurricane. Also, the plan failed to acknowledge the impact of the same on drinking water, food and shelter. Thirdly, the plan is a failure in the fact that it did not take into consideration the impossibility of using tents in heavy wind. If the MA took all these points into consideration, the situation would not have arisen. References British Columbia. (n.d). Introduction to the incident command system. Ministry of Environment. Retrieved from http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/eemp/resources/icsintro.htm Dispatch Magazine On-Line. (n.d). What is the incident command system (ICS). Retrieved from http://www.911dispatch.com/info/ics/ics_describe.html Federal Emergency Management Agency. (2010). FEMA disaster response assets and enhancements. Retrieved from http://www.fema.gov/media/archives/2007/061207.shtm Volunteer Florida. (n.d). Disaster mitigation: A guide for community-based organizations, 1-23. Retrieved from http://www.volunteerflorida.org/emergencymanagement/docs/2008/mitigation.pdf Read More